Sing In The Light

Times They Are A Changing

Keith — Mon, 09 May 2011 14:24:28 +0000

Sorry to say that this blog will soon go away as I will begin directing all my blog content to my newer blog at www.ourwonderroom.com. New site to match the new title of the book I am working on.
Yodel (mp3 link)

LISTEN NOW to our show with Jerry Bussell

Ribbons

Keith — Fri, 07 Jan 2011 15:43:44 +0000

Yesterday I got news that a friend had passed away. Not a close friend, but more than an acquaintance. It is interesting because this morning I am still trying to figure out my reactions. For certain I am happy for him, for I know he was suffering in his battle against cancer. After that suffering is no more. But I am sad because I have no idea of his spiritual well-being. Had he accepted Christ? What opportunities did I miss to share Christ with him, to step out in boldness and ask?

This morning I read this quote -

“Each day comes bearing its gifts. Untie the ribbons.”
– Ruth Ann Schabacher

God, please grant me the eyes to see Your gifts, and the courage to untie the ribbons. Every person that I encounter today is a gift.

And I am reminded of these words from Stephen Grellet -

“I shall pass through this world but once.
Any good, therefore, that I can show to any human being,
let me do it now.
Let me not defer nor neglect it,
for I shall not pass this way again.”
–Stephen Grellet

Wonder

Keith — Mon, 03 Jan 2011 14:35:14 +0000

Over the weekend I started really working in earnest at putting pieces together for a book. And what I really focused on was the sense of wonder that God has created in us. It is this sense that gives me hope. And I have no doubt it is placed there by our Creator. Not only in times of darkness, but in times of praise and jubilation as well.

“A little girl taking an evening walk with her father looked up at the stars and exclaimed,
‘Oh, Daddy, if the wrong side of heaven is so beautiful what must the right side be!’”
– Unknown

Hope is a little girl, wondering how beautiful the other side of heaven is.
Hope is me sitting in church last night, listening to ‘Shelter’ by Jars of Clay, wondering who God has placed me near and why.
Hope is waking up each morning with the excitement of a child, wondering how God will choose to reveal Himself to me today.

May God bless you today with hope, and with wonder.

“Be strong and take heart, all you who hope in the LORD.”
– Psalm 31:24

ps… you can listen to the song and read the lyrics here – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DoDmFQWOL4Y

The Lord Is Great

Keith — Mon, 27 Dec 2010 15:14:41 +0000

When I wake up in the morning it is usually my intent to spend some time with God by reading His Word. And to share it with you all more days than not. And at the end of the day I try to reflect on the day and my experiences with God. I do MUCH better in the morning than in the evening, but what of the time in the middle? That really is the bigger challenge for me. I do not seek Him with the same intentionality and purpose. He forces His way in and I am in awe at His timely revelations. I want more but do little about it.

“Many are willing that Christ should be something, but few will consent that Christ should be everything.”
–Alexander Moody Stuart

This is that infamous time of year when I think about the coming year and what I would like to see happen. How will I weave Christ into those things? Into “everything” as Stuart says? It is not that I can do some things because of God. It is that I can NOTHING without God. If I really believe that, then He should be the very framework around which I plan all things. And that I should start with one day, and master that on a consistent basis, then one week, and build from there. A discipline before a habit. Walk before I run.

“I know that the LORD is great, that our Lord is greater than all gods. The LORD does whatever pleases him, in the heavens and on the earth, in the seas and all their depths. He makes clouds rise from the ends of the earth; he sends lightning with the rain and brings out the wind from his storehouses.”
– Psalm 135:5-7, The New International Version

Filler

Keith — Tue, 14 Dec 2010 15:00:20 +0000

Jesus did not come to explain away suffering or remove it. He came to fill it with His Presence.
–Paul Claudel

I have a friend who is in the hospital for three days as they try a new experimental medication for his chronic A-Fib. I won’t pretend to understand even part the ramifications of A-fib and how it affects the body, other than it affects the heart and that ain’t good.

When I think of the pain my friend is in, and the pain of others through injury, disease or loss of a loved one, it will be different now because of Claudel’s words. They are great. For me it can be hard to know what exactly to do in situations of suffering or loss. That uncertainty creates an empty space, a buffer, a barrier as I waffle on what to do. But, now I will hopefully remember to see them as opportunity to be His presence in that vacuum of emptiness. Will I know what that looks like exactly? Probably not. I must rely on Him to guide me.

May you prayerfully know when you are part of God’s “filler”.

I Can Share

Keith — Tue, 07 Dec 2010 16:47:23 +0000

This morning I was a bit behind in my work and didn’t get the recycling bins out at my usual time. As I’m working away I hear the clinking of glass and make a frantic bee-line for our recycle bins and rush out the door to see the recycling truck at our walkway. Now, I don’t know about you, but my experience is that the people doing the recycling and the garbage pickup aren’t typically the most social people. It’s early. It’s raining. It’s cold. And, well, it’s garbage. At any rate this gentleman was nice. I asked him if it was going to be a busy day and we talked for a couple minutes about his route. He smiled the whole time and I think he enjoyed the conversation.

Reflecting on that, it reminds me of the words from Tim Hansel in his book ‘You Gotta Keep Dancin’. I know I’ve shared these words before, but I can never read them enough. I need to make more time to share and not always be in a rush here and there. I’m sure the recycling guy that I talked to can’t dilly-dally and talk with everyone on his route, but you know, he made my morning. Maybe I made his.

There isn’t much that I can do,
but I can share my bread with you,
and sometimes share a sorrow, too—
as on our way we go.

There isn’t much that I can do,
but I can sit an hour with you,
and I can share a joke with you,
and sometimes share reverses, too—
as on our way we go.

There isn’t much that I can do,
but I can share my flowers with you,
and I can share my books with you
and sometimes share your burdens, too—
as on our way we go.

There isn’t much that I can do,
but I can share my songs with you,
and I can share my mirth with you,
and sometimes come and laugh with you—
as on our way we go.

There isn’t much that I can do,
but I can share my hopes with you,
and I can share my fears with you,
and sometimes shed tears with you—
as on our way we go.

There isn’t much that I can do,
but I can share my friends with you,
and I can share my life with you,
and oftentimes share a prayer with you—
as on our way we go.

AUTHOR UNKNOWN
from Tim Hansel, You Gotta Keep Dancin‘

Icebergs

Keith — Fri, 26 Nov 2010 15:57:32 +0000

“We judge ourselves by what we feel capable of doing, while others judge us by what we have already done.”
-Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, poet (1807-1882)

Reading these words really resonated with me this morning. I am my own worst critic for the very reason that Longfellow states: I know what I am capable of. When I see the homeless man on the corner, I know what I’m capable of. When I see the woman with her hands full walking towards the door at the store, I know what I’m capable of. When that person on the road pulls in front me of as if I wasn’t even there, I know what I am capable.

Through it all is GRACE. God, too, knows what I am capable of and yet He still loves me. Not only does He love me, but he provides me even more opportunities to demonstrate the goodness that I have inside. No, the GREATNESS that I have inside. May you and I live each day in such a way that what we have already done is but the tip of the iceberg* of what we are capable of doing for the glory of His kingdom.

“Dear brothers, warn those who are lazy; comfort those who are frightened; take tender care of those who are weak; and be patient with everyone. See that no one pays back evil for evil, but always try to do good to each other and to everyone else. Always be joyful. Always keep on praying. No matter what happens, always be thankful, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus.”
- 1 Thessalonians 5:14-18, The Living Bible

“For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.”
- Ephesians 2:10

In His service,
Keith

*PS – Did you know that 70% of an iceberg is hidden under water? I had that read to me by a fourth grader this week from a book I was helping him read. The goodness that I see in others might only be 30% of what they’re capable of? WOW! WOW! WOW! If I must judge others, may it be by the 70% unseen, God-filled potential.

Mirror, Mirror

Keith — Wed, 17 Nov 2010 16:13:44 +0000

“What other people think of me is becoming less and less important; what they think of Jesus because of me is critical.”
–Cliff Richard

I’m not going to break out into a chorus of “They will know we are Christians”. Does it really matter that someone knows whether or not I am a Christian? Let’s say that is important. Then how will they know? “By my love”? Simply put, yes. People are going to watch the way that I (and you) treat other people, how I handle certain situations, what I say and how I say it, what I do when I don’t think anybody is watching…

My responsibility while on this earth is to be a reflection of Jesus. What people think of me is a direct reflection on what I think of Jesus. Hmm, maybe I should not be so much a mirror as a transparent piece of glass. May I live myself in such a way that I do not tarnish someone’s view of Jesus.

So, let me ask the question again, is it import that someone knows I am a Christian? YOU BET. If someone just thinks I’m a nice guy, then what good is that to God? I should live so that people want to know what makes me tick. It isn’t about me or you being the BEST Christian, it is about living in such a way that people WANT to know the reason why I live as I do (1 Peter 3:15).

I leave you this morning with these additional words, from 1 Peter 4: 7-11 -

“Therefore be clear minded and self-controlled so that you can pray. Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins. Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling. Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God’s grace in its various forms. If anyone speaks, he should do it as one speaking the very words of God. If anyone serves, he should do it with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. To him be the glory and the power for ever and ever. Amen.”

In His Presence

Keith — Mon, 15 Nov 2010 16:14:25 +0000

“We are always in the presence of God, yet it seems to me that those who pray are in his presence in a very different sense.”
–Teresa of Avila

As I read this moments ago it occurred to me that I can do not greater work than to remind others that “we are always in the presence of God”. Does it always seem like God is right next to me? No. Do I always think that He hears my cries, or even my shouts of joy? No.

“Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the LORD your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you.” – Deuteronomy 31:6

“Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.” – Hebrews 13:5

WOW! Reading these versus reminded me so much of the song ‘Strong Tower’ by Kutless. You can watch the video on YouTube -

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NawddLbdqLA

Of course it is hard for me to say that God is always near me, even as I suffer through trials and hardship. Or as I watch others struggle. But then I think to my earthly parents, and how they supported me from a distance as I stumbled at times. How much more did I learn because of the stumbles, versus if they had placed a hedge around me? How is it possible that I could encourage others if I had not been encouraged myself or if I had not struggled myself?

All that said, Christ is the ultimate encourager. The true giver of hope.

“But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have.” – 1 Peter 3:15

The HOPE that I have is there because God gave it to me. He gave it to me that I might share it with others, and that you might share it with others who need it. There is no shortage of people who need even a glimpse of hope, a modicum of compassion. May God, who is always with me, bless me eyes to see, a ears to listen, and heart to touch. And if I may be so bold, may I pray the same for you?

Where?

Keith — Thu, 28 Oct 2010 14:32:17 +0000

“Could we pierce the veil, and were we vigilant and attentive, God would reveal Himself continuously to us and we should rejoice in His actions in everything that happened to us.”
–Jean Pierre de Caussade

Oh, how I wish that I knew the origins of the game hide-and-seek. My wager would be that in the earliest scientific/anthropological records of peoples and cultures there is evidence of hide and seek. It seems almost natural to play hide and seek with infants from the earliest age. Where did that start? Part of me doesn’t want to say it started in the Garden of Eden, because then there’s the snake, and then my perception of hide and seek isn’t a good one. But I digress slightly. I wonder if there was hide and seek in the Garden before the snake.

It is our nature both to hide and to seek. Does that mean it is in God’s nature to hide? I know He seeks, but does He hide Himself? In asking that question this morning I found these verses:

“Why, O LORD, do you stand far off?
Why do you hide yourself in times of trouble?”
–Psalm 10:1

“Truly You are God, who hide Yourself, O God of Israel, the Savior!”
–Isaiah 45:15 (New King James Version)

And in seeking an answer I found this quote by Christopher Esget, a pastor in Virginia – “God hides Himself in order to reveal Himself in weakness and suffering, in sacrifice and the cross.” (which was from part of a larger thought on his blog). You can agree or disagreen, but his words got me thinking that the power and emphasis is not so much on the hiding, but on the revelation.

When I see an amazing sunset, I stand in awe of God. When I hear of someone’s selfless act, I am in awe. When someone thanks me for my emails, I am dumbfounded (not that I am on par with the sunset). These are but simple ways God reveals Himself to me. God wired me, He knows how to get my attention.

But is God truly hiding, or is it is my ability to see Him, my desire to seek Him, my inability to “pierce the veil” that stand in the way?

I leave you today with these words from Romans 1:20 (though their true power lies comes from Romans 1:21-32) -

“For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse. “